Like Father, Like Daughter
by HayBales2011
Summary: Lame title, but it's all I could think up :P Chuck and Sarah's daughter is thrust into the spy world when she has to scramble to save her parents. The whole gang will appear at some point. I'm not very good at summary, so just read and review please :P
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hi, it's me again, and this time, I'm a high school graduate! Yay! So, I don't want to spoil too much about the story, but you should probably know that Meg, who tells this story, is Chuck and Sarah's daughter, about 18 years old. And it might help you to remember that, even though in the story Chuck and Sarah have an 18-year-old, I still think of them as they are in the series, not any older. Read and review please!

I am my parent's daughter. There's no denying it. They're spies and I guess I'm going to be one too. But I guess I should start at the beginning, right? My name is Megan Eleanor Bartowski, but you can call me Meg. My parents are Chuck and Sarah Bartowski. Before I was born, or so I'm told, they apparently had some sort of epic romance. But, I'm not here to talk about that. This is my story. And it all started on my first day of my senior year. The day I found out what my parents really did for a living.

"Honey, it's time to wake up!" My mom said, "It's your first day of your senior year! And you know what that means…I am officially old."

"Oh, mom," I said getting out of bed, "I'm old. In a year, I"ll be going to college."

"And I've already been and gone…and now I have a daughter that's about to go too!"

"But mom…I love you!" I said with a sly smile. My mom and I had been best friends since before I could remember. I couldn't imagine not having her as my mom.

"Nice try there. Just remember- you won't get to college if you're late. Go ahead and start getting ready." She added. I got ready quickly then went into the kitchen and saw my dad and his best friend, uncle Morgan, standing at the counter waiting for pop tarts to come out of the toaster.

"Wow, Meg, are you wearing new perfume? It smells like strawberries…"

"No, uncle Morgan, I think you're smelling your pop tart." I said. As if on cue, the pop tart popped up. Morgan went and started to eat it in the next room. I started to pour myself a bowl of cereal. I looked over at Morgan and my dad and tried to remember a time when they didn't work at the Buy More. I kept thinking that if I was going to college next year, my parents might want to get better jobs than a Nerd Herd supervisor and a fro-yo server. But, every time I asked my parents about money, all they said was that it was 'taken care of.' I believed them, but I took on shifts at the Orange Orange as often as I could, just to be safe. But today, it wasn't about going to work. I had to get to school! I gulped down the rest of my cereal and headed out the door.

I walked through the doors of my high school that day more confident than ever. My cousin, Clara, had just left for college about a week before, she was going to UCLA, her parents' alma mater, and without her there, I wasn't sure how to make it on my own. But, it was also my senior year, and I and my classmates ruled the school. That year, a new teacher came to our school. His name was Mr. Campbell and he taught the senior English class. When I first came into his classroom I had no idea what to think. I guess I thought he was handsome, in a totally non-creepy way, of course. He had sleek black hair that was neatly gelled and combed.

"Hello class," He began, "My name is Mr. Campbell. As you probably know, I'm new here, so I hope you can all help to teach me the ropes. Now, to begin, let me hand out this syllabus." He said, picking up a large stack of paper. The class let out a common groan of disappointment. The first day back was already boring enough without yet another syllabus to flip through mindlessly. I got mine, and my eyes went directly to this years reading list. Of course, it had on there the obligatory William Shakespeare and even a Jane Austen novel, but was got my attention was the bottom two books that said 'Teacher's Choice'. Apparently Mr. Campbell had selected Orwell's _1984_ and Sun-Tsu's _The Art of War._ The first one I sort of expected, the senior classes had read it practically every year, but _The Art of War_? No senior class had ever read it before. I could tell it was going to be an interesting semester.

Later on, at home, I was having dinner with mom, dad, Aunt Ellie, and uncles Awesome and Casey when mom asked the dreaded question:

"How was school today?"

"Good." I replied. How else was I supposed to answer?

"Anything interesting happen?" Mom asked. Seriously, was my mom a trained interrogator or something? Wait…don't answer that…

"Well, my English teacher's new to the school, and apparently he's going to have us read _The Art of War._"

"Heh. Good book." Uncle Casey replied. Everyone gave him a look, "What?" He added, "I liked it."

"Even so, it's sort of an odd book for a high school English class to be reading." Ellie said. Then, in the moment after those words left my aunt's mouth, my world came crashing down. Both my parents put their hand to their ears and started yelling in pain. I saw their eyes flutter than eventually close seemingly in tandem with one another. It seemed that they figured out what was going on and they took each other's hand. I had no idea what was going on, but everyone at the table apparently did.

"Chuck! Sarah!" Ellie cried. She rushed to my mom's side while Casey went to my dad. They both caught them as they fell from their chairs.

"Mom! Dad! What's going on?" I frantically asked.

"We need to call General Beckman. Someone's set off the Norseman." Casey said.

"General who? And what the heck is the Norseman?" I asked, "Uncle Casey, what is going on?"

"We never wanted to tell you like this," Ellie began, "But your parents are spies, Meg."

"And they could be dying." Casey explained. I was right. This was definitely going to be the most interesting semester of my life.


	2. Chapter 2

I rode to the hospital with my parents in the ambulance as Ellie, Devon, and Casey followed in the Crown Vic. I watched paramedics go to work on them, installing breathing tubes and putting them on IV drips. I stood out of their way, silently sobbing, facing away from them. We arrived at the hospital, and once they had them stabilized, I sat in between them, still sobbing. Ellie walked in quietly. She put her hand on my shoulder. I looked up and saw tears coming from her eyes, too.

"What happened to them?" I asked.

"All that I know is that there's this weapon called the Norseman. It can target a single person out of a huge crowd based on DNA. It poisons them. The only problem is that we don't know who set it off. Last time we saw it, it was in the possession of a woman named Vivian Volkoff. But, she's our friend now. Her and her dad are responsible for your college fund." Ellie answered, "And they have the antidote."

"Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go get it!" I exclaimed.

"They've both been on the run longer than you've been alive. There's no hope of finding them now. But no one would set off a weapon that dangerous without having the antidote close at hand. We need to find out who set it off and convince them to give it to us." Ellie reasoned.

"I found it." Devon said, coming in the hospital room holding a vial of liquid.

"What is that? Is that the antidote?" I asked.

"No, but this will help keep them alive and buy us time. The supply we have can last us about two weeks." He explained.

"Then we need to act fast." I said, "First things first: who would want my mom and dad dead?"

The next day, I had to go back to school. In Mr. Campbell's class, we had begun reading _The Art of War._ I noticed that he read way too much into it. Given, reading too much into books is kind of what English teachers do, but he seemed to know way too much about military tactics than the average English teacher should. Maybe he had been in the Army before switching to a more comfortable, less life-threatening job?

"Don't forget about 'Meet the Teacher' night tonight! I'm looking forward to meeting all of your parents." Mr. Campbell said as the bell rang. I picked up my things and was starting to make my way out of the room when Mr. Campbell said, "Oh, and by the way, Meg, I heard that your parents are in the hospital. How are they doing?"

"They'll be fine, sir." I said, "It was some sort of…freak accident. How did you hear they were in the hospital? I haven't told anyone."

"I have a friend that works there. He told me about it. Go ahead, you don't need to be late for your next class." He said. I ducked out of the classroom. I didn't see the smirk on his face as the door closed. After the final bell of school, I was on my way out of school when my friend caught up to me.

"So, do you want to hang out?" Jamie LeMarque, one of my best friends that I'd had ever since kindergarten, asked.

"I don't really have time. I have to stop by work."

"Well. then we can hang at the Orange Orange!" She exclaimed.

"I'd love to, Jamie, but…"

"Nope, no buts, Bartowski. I'm coming with you whether you like it or not. I have nothing better to do anyway." Jamie said, taking me by the hand. I had no choice but to let her tag along. We arrived at the fro-yo shop a few minutes later. I had just served her a double scoop when my aunt practically ran inside the store. She said hello to my friend, then came over to me.

"I need to talk to you about something." She whispered in my ear, "Can you ask her to leave?" "No, she rode with me." I whispered back.

"Alright, then. Let's get in the freezer." Ellie said.

"Excuse me…you want me to do what?"

"Just come on." Ellie said.

"Uh, excuse me, Jamie, I just gotta…" I started saying as Ellie pulled me into the heavy-duty freezer of the Orange Orange. A door in the back of the freezer that I had never seen before was open, and Casey was standing right behind it. Ellie led me through the door into the Castle.

"What the…" I said, breathless, looking around the base at all the technology and just the size of the base, "Is this some sort of spy safehouse or something?"

"It's a base, but safehouse is pretty close. We have things to discuss. Have you ever heard of the name Daniel Shaw before?" Casey asked. I shook my head.

"Who is he?" I asked.

"He used to work with your parents. Long story short, he developed a huge grudge against them and tried to kill all of us. We believe he may have escaped from prison." Casey explained.

"And when did this happen?"

"A couple days ago. They wanted to make sure that a preliminary search didn't turn up anything before worrying us." Casey said.

"That means he could have been behind what happened to mom and dad! Do we have a picture of this guy?" I asked. Casey pressed a few buttons on the computer screen and up popped a photo of a man with sleek, jet-black hair, just like Mr. Campbell's. Wait a minute, it was Mr. Campbell! _Of course, it all makes sense now! _I thought to myself, _knowing too much about military stuff, asking about my parents…he was the one that wanted to kill my parents!_

"Have you seen him before?" Ellie asked, noticing my shocked expression.

"Do you remember me talking about the new English teacher?" I asked her. She nodded. "That's him. He's at my school. Guys, I think he might be planning to come after me, too. Otherwise, why didn't he just leave?"

"I think I know what we should do," Casey said, "Let's not act on this right away. Let's lead him on. We make him think that we don't know, that way he carries out his plan. But, with a little spywork, we can know what plan that is in advance and stop it from happening. That way we can blackmail him into giving us the antidote."

"How are we so sure he was the one that used the Norseman on Chuck and Sarah?" Ellie asked.

"We're not. But we can be. As long as Meg's up for a little spying."

"Alright." I said resolutely, "It seems like I'm going into the Bartowski family business. At least until I save mom and dad."

"Good," Ellie said, "Now, Meg, this is going to be the hardest job of all: staying quiet. Not letting Shaw know that we're on to him. Do you think you can do that?" She asked. I nodded. This was going to be harder than I expected, but still doable. Ellie led me back up the stairs and into the Orange Orange, where Jamie was still sitting eating her frozen yogurt.

"Hey there! I thought you'd run off on me! Why were you in the freezer so long? And with your aunt?" She asked.

"Well, my mom wanted me to show her some…uh…strawberries that she thought were going bad. You see, they're just starting to turn, so mom wanted a second opinion to make sure they were still safe to eat." I lied. Where did I come up with this stuff? Jamie, who isn't exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer, bought it. She finished up her fro-yo (which she felt safe eating because she hadn't gotten strawberries) and then we got back in my car (a borrowed nerd-herder) to head back to her house. When we arrived, I parked in the driveway. Jamie opened up the garage door and her brother came out. Confession: I have been in love with my best friend's brother ever since the eighth grade when he lent me his calculator on a math test. He and Jamie are twins, but they don't look anything alike. She has brown eyes, he had bright blue ones. Jamie's a brunette, and John (Jamie and John…can you tell they're twins?) has hair that's more red than anything else. He came to my car window and knocked. I rolled it down for him.

"Hey, Meg, I heard that your parents are in the hospital. Are you okay? Anything I can do?" He asked.

"I'll be okay. My aunt and uncle live across the courtyard from me, so it'll be fine." I told him.

"Well, if you need anything, just call me." He said.

"I…I don't think I ever got your number." I said.

"Well then, do you have a slip of paper?" He asked. I fudged around in the glove apartment for paper, any slip of paper. _Please God, help me out on this one! _ I prayed. I found an old receipt stuck in between the driver and passenger's seat.

"Will this work?" I asked, "Here's a pen." I said, presenting a Buy More pen that I found in my search for paper. He wrote his number on the receipt and handed it back to me.

"Don't be afraid to call." He said. He went back inside and I rolled up my window. I figured he didn't need to hear me squeal.

Then, with really nothing else to do except wait for school tomorrow, I went back to my house. I entered the apartment and the first thing I saw was the x-box right by the TV. I remembered my dad and uncle Morgan playing Call of Duty there for hours. I saw the kitchen where aunt Ellie helped teach my mom how to cook. It all seemed so empty now without them. I sat down on the couch and started to cry. I was going to do anything to get them back. This Shaw guy had betrayed my family once before. Wasn't that enough for him? Why did he feel he had the right to destroy my life? I had no clue the spy world even existed until yesterday! I was going to bring Shaw down. No matter what.


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Hey guys! So, I was going through the last chapter and noticed that I missed some proofreading stuff…I thought this may be a good time to mention that this is unbeta'd, so please bear with me! Usually, it's stuff you can figure out or that doesn't make it unreadable, but if you catch anything that's confusing, please tell me! Thanks, and I hope you're enjoying this! Reviews are always welcome :)**_

I went to school the next day nervous. English was my second hour, and I spent the whole first period tapping my foot, my pencil, or anything else that was in reach. Thankfully, no one noticed. I knew that I couldn't do this in front of Shaw. He would be too much of a good spy not to notice. When the bell for the passing period rang, my heart started thumping. I could feel it beating through my shirt. I started sweating. This couldn't happen. I had to hide this better. _How would mom or dad handle this? _I asked myself, _They wouldn't have to. They wouldn't be nervous. _My thoughts raced. I tried thinking of things to calm me down, but even thinking of John's bright blue eyes didn't help. I finally arrived at the English classroom. I could feel my pulse as I gripped the metal handle and turned it. I began to picture Shaw, or Mr. Campbell, right behind the door pointing a gun at my head. I let out a sigh of relief when I entered the classroom and found that it wasn't true, he was simply sitting at his desk. He gave me a smile that I wanted to slap off his face. I sat down quietly at my seat and got out my stuff for the class. I somehow got through the class period without arousing suspicion. He never even talked to me. I ducked out of the classroom and went on with the day, somewhat proud of myself. Then I got the text:

Meet me at Castle after school. Need to plan after-hours school break-in to get into Shaw's classroom. -Casey.

Really? I hadn't been through enough? I could tell that this wasn't going to end well. It was bad enough if we got caught by a teacher or principal, but what if Shaw himself found us during this break-in? But, I guess that's the risk that spies make, and I was a spy, if only for a little while. I told him that I would be there and went on with the day, trying to act if nothing had happened, but as I'm certain you probably guessed, that didn't happen. I was jittery all day, and at lunch, Jamie noticed.

"Hey, what's with you today? You look like you have to pee all the time. You alright?" She asked.

"Yeah, I'm good…just a little…tense."

"Because of your parents being in the hospital?"

"Uh…yeah. I guess you could say that."

"Well what happened to them?"

"I…I don't want to talk about it." I said. Hey, it was true, wasn't it?

"I get it," Jamie said, "And just in case you needed something to cheer you up, my brother's on his way!" Jamie said, pointing at John, who was just now getting out of the lunch line and heading this way. I quickly fixed my hair when he wasn't looking (I got my mom's blonde hair with my dad's funny animal shapes). He sat down right next to me.

"Hi, John," I said.

"Hey, Meg. How are you holding up?" He asked.

"Good, I think. My aunt and uncle work at the hospital, so I know they're being well taken care of."

"And what hospital is that?" He asked. What was this, 20 questions?

"Westside Medical." I answered.

"Well, that's enough about that, Meg doesn't like to talk about it." Jamie said. I mouthed a silent _thank you!_ to my friend, "So how's your day been, bro?" Jamie asked her twin.

"Good. I still have to read that last part of _The Art of War _ for Mr. Campbell's class." John replied. At the first mention of Mr. Campbell, my pulse quickened again.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Jamie asked, "You haven't been looking so good today."

"Yeah, it's just…I don't think those beans they served in the cafeteria yesterday sat well with me…" I lied. I had been doing a lot of that lately…

"Okay…" Jamie said, clearly not convinced but willing to drop the subject. We went back to eating our lunches, and when the bell rang we went back to class. Totally normal. I went through the last couple hours of the day in a daze. The last bell rang and I went straight for my car. I didn't chance talking to anyone, or having Jamie tag along with me to the Orange Orange like yesterday. I arrived at the frozen yogurt shop a little later, and I headed to the freezer. No one was in the shop, so I wouldn't have to explain myself. I went into the freezer, but didn't see the door open like last time. I went to where I saw the door yesterday, but all it was now was a wall. I knocked on it, and it sounded hollow. I had found the right place. Like clockwork, my cell phone rang. It was uncle Casey.

"Hi, uncle Casey. I'm right outside. How do I get in?"

"Do you see a sconce near you on the wall?" He asked.

"Yeah."

"Pull it towards you." He said. I did as I was told, and the interface for the Castle's security system popped up. I didn't even gasp. Nothing really surprised me anymore.

"Do I just…put my hand on there? Will it let me in?"

"Yeah. Your parents added you a while ago, so that in cases like this, you could let yourself in." He told me. It was unsettling that my parents thought of this beforehand, but I suppose that's the nature of their job, you have to be ready for anything. I put my hand on the scanner and the door opened. I walked down the stairs and met my aunt, my uncle, and Casey, all standing around a table.

"So, what's the plan? Have you thought of anything yet?" I asked.

"No, not yet. But we know of someone who can help." Ellie assured, flipping on the large plasma TV on the wall right in front of us. A redheaded woman in a military uniform with stars on her shoulders appeared on the screen.

"Hello, Miss Bartowski," She greeted, "Pleasure to finally meet you. I'm General Beckman. I've been working closely with your parents for quite some time now. I understand you'd like to help get them out of their comas?" I nodded. I'd never talked to a military officer before, much less a general, and I was nervous that I would offend her by not addressing her correctly. That, and she was kind of intimidating. "Well then," She continued, "Do you think you're ready?"

"Yes, ma'am." I said, "As ready as I'll ever be."

"Well then, we need to give you a little crash course in spying. The mission is set to take place in an hour and a half. Colonel Casey, do you mind helping her get ready?" The General asked.

"Yes ma'am." Casey answered. The screen went black.

"Ok…that was good, but we still don't have a plan. The mission is in an hour and half. We better do that first." I suggested.

"We're breaking in to the school. That's all the plan we need. We need to get you ready."

"Ready how? Like training?" I asked.

"Yep. Let's go to the dojo."

"Wait, the what? There's a dojo in here?" I asked.

"You have a lot to learn." Casey said. We entered the dojo, and uncle Casey had me put on some clothes that were easier to move in. I was surprised to find that there were clothes down there that actually fit me. I guess my parents really did think of everything. "Now," Casey said, tossing me a bamboo staff, "Let's see what you've got." He came at me with his staff and easily knocked me onto the ground. The worst thing is, I could tell he was going easy on me so that I didn't get hurt.

"That's easy," I said from the ground, "I got nothin'."

"The most important part is getting up and trying again. I know you'll never believe this, but your dad wasn't too skilled at stuff like this either. That is, until your mom taught him her moves." He said, giving an amused grunt at his own joke.

"Ok, then." I said, getting up. He came at me again, and this time, I was able to block the blow. I wasn't able to knock him down, but I got in a few good hits before he called the lesson over. We had no time to waste. We had to get suited up and get to school.

My parents hadn't foreseen the need to put stealth gear in my size down in the Castle, but thankfully, me and my mom are close enough in size, I could wear hers without any problem. We got ready and got in Casey's van and drove to the school.

"So how are we going to get in? The only door open after-hours is the front door, and we obviously can't use that." I asked.

"See that ladder there?" Casey said, "We're going to climb onto the roof using it, then enter through the vents." He explained.

"Oh." I said. My aunt, uncle, Casey and I all exited the van and ran to the ladder. I took a deep breath before climbing up. I had been in nerve-wracking situations before, like when I played the lead in the school play in third grade. I was so nervous before the show that I threw up. Literally. No one knew, since I did it in the bathroom and I made sure no one was around, but I did. I was on stage, shaking, when I caught sight of my mom and dad in the audience. They smiled at me, and I saw my mom blow me a kiss. My nerves were instantly gone. This time was different. For one, playing the lead in a play isn't risking your life. It's risking embarrassment, sure, but not your life. And secondly, my parents weren't here. That was a huge drawback. But we were working to save them, and we were working together. That's what mattered right now.

I climbed up to the roof of the school, and followed aunt Ellie, who followed Devon, who followed Casey, down into the ventilation system. We crawled through the ventilation shafts, trying to figure out which one led into 'Mr. Campbell's' classroom. During our crawl in the vents, I must have dislocated my hips in seven places. Do they not take into account when they were building this that people would, eventually, be crawling around in these?

"I think this is it." I whispered, as we came to another opening in the bottom of the tunnel. Casey nodded. He took out an electric screwdriver and started unscrewing the grate. He then helped hook me up to the harness to lower me down. He lowered me down and I started searching through the desk drawers, looking for any sort of clue as to what Shaw's plan was or where the antidote was. Casey lowered my aunt then my uncle down into the classroom and then he himself jumped down from the vent. We all were searching around in the desk when all of a sudden, I heard the loudest noise that I had ever heard in my life: a key slid into the lock on the door of the classroom. Everyone looked up and Casey helped everyone back up into the vent as fast as possible. He extended his hand to me to help me up, but I was paralyzed. I stood there like a deer in headlights as Daniel Shaw walked into the room.


	4. Chapter 4

**_A/N: Thanks a lot for the reviews! This is the second-to-last chapter, so I hope that you've been enjoying it! This is also the longest chapter, so that's why it took me a little but longer than normal to get to you guys. Please review!_**

Daniel Shaw walked into the classroom, and I stood as stiff as a board behind the desk. When he saw me, he drew a gun. I put my hands up.

"What are you doing in here?" He asked harshly. He looked around at the surroundings. "Oh, I see…you're trying to find the antidote, aren't you? Well, here it is." Shaw said, pulling out a vial of green liquid from the pocket of his slacks.

"All I want to do is save my parents. I understand you have some sort of crazy vendetta against them, but this is going too far." I said.

"Going too far? If you must know, your mother killed my wife." Shaw said. My mouth fell. My mom, Sarah Bartowski, would never do anything like that. My mom was one of the kindest and gentlest people I knew.

"You're lying."

"I have the surveillance video to back it up." He said, "But I suppose even then you won't believe me. You're too young and naive for that."

"I'm old enough to know good from evil. And I'm not too naive to know which one you are."

"Really? Are you now? If you're so smart, then you should know that people will do anything to get what they want. For example, I will give you the antidote and let you save your parents if you agree to join the Ring."

"What's the Ring?" I asked.

"A spy organization. It's main purpose is restoring America's place in the world. Something the CIA can never do on its own." He said.

"I'm a Bartowski. If there's one thing you should know by now about Bartowskis, it's that we're loyal. Loyal to our friends, our country, and most of all, to our family. No."

"Well then, your parents' lives are on you." He said, beginning to turn around.

"Wait a minute, I'm not done yet." I said, suddenly getting a surge of strength, "If you plan on killing them, then see it happen. You weren't man enough to kill them face to face. I want you to be there when they die. I want you to see the pain you're causing so many people. People you've probably never heard of."

"Never stopped me before. There's only one way to stop me: you join the Ring."

"I already gave you my answer."

"Then I guess your talent will go to waste." Shaw said. I perked up.

"What?"

"Given some beginner error, you have the makings of an excellent spy. The CIA would just waste your talents behind a desk somewhere. With my organization, you'll be able to reach your full potential."

"Yeah, because I'm totally going to run off with the guy that's killing my parents…" I said.

"Perhaps you would do well to consider the alternatives. You either join me and save your parents, or you can join your parents and die. Your choice."

"I choose…" I said, gathering up the strength to do what I was about to do, "…neither!" I yelled, striking at Shaw. I managed to get the gun out of his hands and into mine, surprisingly. I held it up, quite proud of myself. "Alright, now will you give me the antidote?"

"You won't pull that trigger. You're just like your dad. Weak."

"How dare you insult him like that! At least my dad has a conscience. Either way, I have the gun now, so you lose." I said.

"I think you're forgetting one thing…" Shaw said. He reached into his suit coat and pulled out the strangest type of pistol I'd ever seen. It had barrel that was a lined with what looked like little lightbulbs, and in front of the trigger were vials of some sort of liquid. "I still have the Norseman. And from this range, it would kill you instantly. I'd be careful if I were you. You wouldn't want me to accidentally pull the trigger."

"Where do you get off? I will never, ever betray my family, never betray my country, like that. If you want to kill me, do it now. At least I won't die a traitor like you will." I said. I had no idea where I was getting this strength to talk to him like this. I didn't feel so strong anymore when he sprang on me. He held me up to the wall by my neck. I gasped for air, and it was almost like I could feel myself dying.

"I am not a traitor!" He yelled, "It was the CIA, it was your parents, that betrayed me!" He screamed. I looked in his eyes, and all I saw was pure fury. Uncle Casey dropped from the ceiling and grabbed Shaw from behind. I was almost unconscious when he finally let me go. I coughed my way back to life as Casey delivered punch after punch square in Shaw's face. The vial of antidote fell out of his pocket during the struggle, and I quickly ran to grab it. Casey put handcuffs on Shaw's wrists and grabbed the Norseman. It was finally over. I was going to be able to save my parents. Aunt Ellie and uncle Devon dropped from the ceiling.

"Are you okay?" Ellie asked. Ever the nervous aunt , and doctor, she went to examining me to make sure I was ok.

"Yeah. Uncle Casey, why didn't you come in sooner?" I asked.

"Well, you had it pretty well under control. The only thing that threw it off was that he had the Norseman, and that wasn't your fault. I still have no idea how he got a hold of it, but he was right about one thing. You do have the makings of a decent spy."

"Did you expect anything else from the daughter of Chuck and Sarah Bartowski?" I said. Casey shook his head.

"Wow, Meg…that was…" Devon began.

"Awesome? I know. Now come on, I've got the antidote. Let's go save mom and dad!" I exclaimed. We hurried out of the school and to the hospital. I held tight to the small bottle of antidote the entire way there, worried that I might somehow lose it. Aunt Ellie called uncle Morgan from the road, who was too tied up at the Buy More to come on the mission, and told him the good news. He was going to come to the hospital right away. We arrived at Westside Medical and hurried up to the floor that my parents were on. Sitting in the waiting room was uncle Morgan.

"Good work, guys." He said, "Let's go save Chuck and Sarah." He added. We were in the hallway outside their room, and I looked in the window and saw John LeMarque sitting in between my parents. He had his back turned, but I could tell it was him.

"Do you want to go in alone?" Ellie asked. I shook my head.

"No, you guys can come. It's just…John's in there right now."

"Why would he be here?" Ellie asked. I shrugged.

"Wanna listen in?" Casey asked, holding up a pair of headphones attached to some sort of device.

"Did you…? How did I know this would happen?" I said. I hesitated for a moment, then grabbed the headphones. Casey helped me tune to the proper frequency, then I could hear everything that John was saying.

"Mr. and Mrs. Bartowski, I think you should know that I'm in love with your daughter." He said. My jaw dropped for probably the hundredth time that day. "I know that I should be saying this to her face, or at least to someone who can actually hear me…" He continued, "But it's just so awkward because Meg's my sister's best friend and I don't really know what to say to her…I meant to talk to you about this, seeing as you're her parents and all, but then you both got hurt. I have no idea how you got hurt, because no one really seems to know except Meg, and she's not telling anyone, which is really weird, but…okay, I'm getting off track. What I'm meaning to ask, and what I'll ask again when you're better, is can I take your daughter to Homecoming?" He asked. Oh my gosh! He wanted to take me to Homecoming! I couldn't believe this! All this time, I thought I didn't stand a chance with him. It could not have worked out more perfect. I took the headphones out of my ear and silently entered the room. Josh was sitting with his back to the door, so he didn't see me come in, and he didn't hear me either. I cleared my throat. He saw me and his eyes widened.

"How long have you been here?" He asked.

"Long enough."

"Did you hear…"

"Everything." I said. He got up from the chair and took my hands in his. It was just like an uber-sappy romantic movie. He took my hand, then we looked into each other's eyes, and we kissed. Me and John actually kissed! I could have touched the moon!

"So then, what do you say to my proposal?" He asked.

"All signs point to yes." I told him. But then, I remembered the antidote and what I was there for in the first place. "If you excuse me, I have to give my parents their medicine."

"How much longer are they going to be in the hospital?" John asked.

"Not long at all."I said, emptying the last drop of antidote into my mom's mouth. Aunt Ellie, Devon, Morgan and Casey came into the room.

"I saw that…" Ellie whispered into my ear. I'm pretty sure no one needed to see me kiss him, they could just look at my blushing face and tell. Mom and dad started to wake up. Ellie went to my dad's side and I went to my mom's.

"…Meg?" Mom breathed.

"Yeah mom, it's me. How are you feeling?" I asked.

"A lot better. Wait a minute, did you…?"

"Uh-huh." I said, nodding. Mom hugged me. Hard.

"Hey, Meg, I think I'm going to go home now." John said. I understood. For anyone that wasn't part of my family, this could be kind of awkward.

"Alright. See you later." I said. He walked past me to leave, and as he did, he gave me a little peck on the cheek. I blushed even redder. My mom looked at me with a surprised expression on her face. As the door closed behind John, my parent's jaws dropped.

"Was that John LeMarque?" Dad asked.

"The guy she's been in love with ever since middle school? Yeah, that was him." Mom answered.

"Good for you, girl!" Dad said.

"And also, guess who saved us, Chuck?"

"Wait a minute, Meg, you…"

"Yep. Well, Casey deserves a lot of the credit too. Shaw would have killed me if he didn't get him off of me."

"Wait, Shaw did this? How?" Mom asked.

"He escaped from prison." I explained, "You remember that new English teacher that I told you about? That was Shaw. I just didn't know who he was." He must have used the Norseman when he did because meet the teacher night was the night after he fired it. "

"And how did you get the antidote? You didn't do anything dangerous did you?" Dad asked.

"Um…no, nothing really dangerous…just crawling around in vents and confronting Shaw to his face…"

"You didn't…Meg, do you understand what you got yourself into?" Mom asked.

"Well, spying is in my blood. And besides, I had these guys in the ceiling above me, ready to back me up."

"She did good." Casey said, "And the best part is, we got the antidote and the Norseman device itself."

"Good. That means we shouldn't have to worry about stuff like this anymore. I still can't believe you saved us! Give me a hug!" Mom said, bringing me in for a hug.

"I still can't believe that my parents are spies…"

"You'll get used to it, eventually. We did." Dad told me. I guessed he was right, I was already starting to get used to it.

"Alright. Let's get a doctor to let us out of here, and then me and you are going shopping for a homecoming dress!" Mom said. I had almost forgotten that John had asked me to the dance. Nervousness built in my stomach again.

"Why do I feel so nervous to go to a high school dance? I think I'm more nervous for homecoming than I was confronting Shaw."

"Don't worry, I've felt that feeling before." Mom said, looking over at my dad, "It's called love."


	5. Chapter 5

**_A/N: Sorry it took me so long to post this! I went on a trip with my family and the hotel didn't have internet...but here you go! The last chapter! I hope you've enjoyed this story!_**

The day of homecoming, me and my mom went through every beauty ritual known to man, or more appropriately, woman. I got my hair done, my nails french-tipped, my eyebrows waxed and my makeup done. When I asked my mom why she was going through all this trouble, she simply said that "she wished someone had done the same for her". I had never known my grandfather. Either one. However, in mom's case, it wasn't because he had died, like my dad's dad, but because he just simply wasn't there. If I could remember correctly, he had come to a few birthday parties in the beginning, but now, nothing. And my mom's mom, well, I had never met her. Mom hadn't heard anything from her in a long time, either. Mom was with me in my room, helping me put on the dress, and I decided to take this alone time to ask a question that had been on my mind since the Shaw incident.

"Mom, um…Shaw said something, when he was threatening to kill me, and I wanna know if it's true…"

"And what did he say?" Mom asked. I could tell she was getting just a little nervous.

"He said that…you killed his wife?"

"Oh, Meg," Mom sighed, "It was my red test. A test all recruits have to pass. The agency wants to make sure they're able to kill someone if the need arises, so they assign each recruit a mole or some other sort of bad guy to kill. I was assigned her."

"And what did she do that she was assigned for someone to kill?"

"We thought she had defected to the Ring. However, that hasn't been proven. The more likely situation is that whoever gave me my assignment was a double agent and had me kill one of our own by mistake. It wasn't my fault. But Shaw decided to take it out on me. Originally, me and Shaw were partners and it worked out pretty well. But the Ring got a hold of him, and showed him the surveillance tape from my red test. That's when he started to go crazy. He took me to Paris, the city where I killed her in the first place, drugged me, and tried to throw me off a bridge into the Seine. But your dad…"

"Saved you?"

"Exactly." Mom said. I mean, seriously, they were made for each other. How it took so long for them to get together, I have no idea. "So, are you ready for the dance?"

"I think so." I said. There was a knock at the door.

"Good, because here he is!" Mom said. My dad opened the door and in came John, along with Jamie and her date. We were all going to ride together to the dance.

'Hey, Meg." He said.

"Hi." I said. He was cute when he didn't know what to say.

"You look…absolutely amazing." He said. I couldn't say I could blame him, I did look pretty good. My dress was a royal blue, one of my mom's favorite colors, and my hair was up in an intricate hairstyle that took about an hour to do. I looked over at my mom who smiled at me, then gave me a look that said _say something! _

"Thanks. You look incredibly handsome." I told him. It wasn't a lie. He had on the sharpest suit I had ever seen, and his brown hair, almost the same color as my dad's, was perfectly in place.

"I brought this for you," John said, getting out a plastic box with a corsage inside. The ribbon was the same exact color as my dress, with small yellowish flowers that matched my hair color. He tied it around my wrist, and then I gave him a kiss. I had something for him too.

"And this is for you." I said, bringing out a boutonnière made with bright blue flowers, which matched both his eyes and my dress perfectly. That way everyone would know we were a couple. We kissed again.

"Alright, you two, you do realize that I'm still here, right?" Mom said, "Now go on, or you'll be late for the dance." She urged. We obliged her and went outside. We took a picture of each couple in front of the courtyard fountain, and then went on to the dance.

We entered the gym and found exactly what you'd expect to find at a school dance: A dance floor, cheesy paper streamer decorations, a punch bowl that was being guarded by one of the teachers, and the DJ in the corner. As we were walking in, they were playing the 'Cupid Shuffle', a line dance. We danced along, and after the song was over, there was applause and then the DJ started playing a slow song.

"Um…Meg…do you want to dance?" John asked. I smiled, then nodded. As the song began, he took me in his arms and we just danced. I knew that we weren't the best dancers on the floor, but that didn't matter. I laid my head on his shoulder. I felt him hold me tighter, and in that moment, I didn't even realize anyone else was there but him. But, the song ended, and we had to pull apart.

"I love you." I told him, looking into his eyes.

"I know." He replied.

"That's a Star Wars reference, right?" I asked.

"Yeah. How did you know that? You don't seem much like a Star Wars fan."

"Ah, but you've never really met my dad and my uncle Morgan, have you?"

"No, I guess not." He laughed, and he lit up the room with his million-watt smile that reminded me so much of my dad. I guess what they said was right: girls are more attracted to men that remind them of their dads. I simply had to kiss him at that moment, and he kissed me back. They started to play another line dance, and then after that, another slow song, which turned into another magical moment. It went on that way all night until, like Cinderella, I had to go home before the clock struck twelve. I went back into the apartment, and my mom and dad were waiting up for me. They were on the couch watching TV, and my mom was laying across the couch, her head in dad's lap.

"Hey," Mom said, lifting her head from dad's lap, "How was the dance?"

"It was amazing! Me and John….had our first kiss!"

"I did not need to hear that…" Dad said.

"Come on, Chuck. Our daughter's practically an adult now. She's graduating in May." Mom said, putting her arm around me.

"And I don't want to think about it yet!" I said, shrugging off me mom's arm, "I don't think I'm ready to go out on my own…"

"Well, if you've proved anything by saving us, it's that you are ready." Dad said, "What you did takes guts. Believe me, I know. Right after I joined the agency, I was always scared. But it got easier. If you can stand up to Shaw, you can do college. Besides, graduation will be here before you know it." He said, and he was right.

Several months later, I found myself sitting in a chair on the floor of the gym in a cap and gown. The time in between had gone by so fast it seemed like a blur. I looked around the gym, and looking behind me, I saw John and Jamie, sitting by each other. The relationship between me and John had only gotten closer since homecoming. Given, I still hadn't told him what really happened to mom and dad and why I was so secretive about it, but I figured that sharing that would come in time, if it ever did come. The names were called, and we all walked across the stage and got our diplomas. When all was done, the principal instructed us to stand.

"And now, new graduates, please move your tassels from right to left to signify that you have officially graduated." He said. We moved our tassels, but it didn't really matter what side they were on, because right after we moved them, we threw our caps in the air. I was about to embark on my future. I had no idea what that future entailed. I had no idea if I would follow in my parent's footsteps and join the CIA, or go a more normal route. For now, I was only sure of one thing: whatever I did, my family would support me through it all. I was a Bartowski, and Bartowskis stick together, no matter what.


End file.
